Ties that bind, ties that break
by ILoanADogma
Summary: Arwen is dead, brutally murdered, and Legolas is to blame. Or is he? Will Aragorn be able to execute his best friend?
1. Death is near

This is my second, count it second, attempt at a serious fic. There's actually some humor in here, couldn't keep it out considering that well, it's me. This is sort of a sequel to my first 'serious' fic, 'Of Blades and Arrows'. You don't have to read that one to understand this, but I would really appreciate it! ;-)  
  
Please make sure to review, makes less work me for. And remember..my bunny's watching..  
  
"Hold him in place."  
  
Aragorn's eyes were cold as the guards struggled to hold the Prince of Mirkwood. They forced him down on his knees, causing a cry of pain to erupt from the elf. One guard leaned down and yanked Legolas' head back by his hair, leaving his neck exposed.  
  
"You cannot do this." The elf whispered, trying hard to conceal his agony.  
  
"My wife is dead, along with my child. Who am I to blame?" Aragorn hissed through clenched teeth.  
  
"You know it was not I."  
  
"SILENCE!" Aragorn roared. He turned to the crowd who gathered under the stone arch.  
  
"Legolas Greenleaf, Prince of Mirkwood, has been tried and found guilty of the murder of Arwen Evenstar and the unborn child. The sentence is clear under Gondorian law." He dropped his tone, and stared into Legolas' eyes.  
  
"Death."  
  
Unable to control himself, Legolas began to tremble.  
  
"Aragorn, you know it was not I! YOU KNOW IT WAS NOT I!" The elf was shouting now, desperate for anyone to hear.  
  
The crowd cheered and laughed, jeering at the one who had murdered their Queen. However, there were those in the back who shrank back, crying that the friendship between the three had gone so sour.  
  
They had been known as 'i nelde' or 'the three'. They were inseparable; Lady Arwen, Lord Aragorn, and the Prince Legolas. Always together, riding through the forests surrounding Gondor. No one could pull them apart. Until now.  
  
Legolas swooned from hopelessness, and offered his soul to the Valinor. Aragorn took a sharp intake of breath, and raised the glittering sword of justice. Legolas closed his eyes, and a single tear ran down his cheek and into the dirt.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Ah Lady Arwen, you look ravishing today!"  
  
Arwen Evenstar laughed, a lovely sound that reminded Legolas of songbirds.  
  
"Why thank you, my prince."  
  
"My prince?" Aragorn teased, coming up behind her and embracing the elf.  
  
"You are my knightly king Aragorn," Arwen joked. "but Legolas will always be my prince."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"You took her life, now I take yours."  
  
Then the fabled King of Gondor brought down his sword with a mighty swing  
  
(A/N: Next chapter coming soon. Does Legolas die? Hmm..) 


	2. A Daring Rescue

You know, some people can be very narrow minded. Why must we all assume Legolas is dead? My goodness.  
  
For a full explanation of Eruan, read my one fic 'Of Blades and Arrows' Also, you don't like the length of my chapters, then don't read. I'm not trying to be mean, it's just that it ticks me off when people complain about dumb things like that.  
  
FWOOOOOSH!  
  
An arrow flew through the air and struck Aragorn in the shoulder. There was pandemonium as a cloaked horseman crashed through the undergrowth, pausing only to knock the heads of Legolas' guards together, and slash at the Prince's bonds.  
  
"Get up!" The rider called.  
  
Legolas mounted the mighty steed and the rider whispered in its ear. The pair took off like lightning through the woods.  
  
"I see you haven't been playing well with others, brother." The rider shouted, not looking back.  
  
"You certainly would know much about that, wouldn't you, Eruan?"  
  
The rider slowed the horse to a trot, then stopped.  
  
"It has been long since I've seen you Legolas."  
  
The rider's hood fell down, revealing an elf whose face mirrored that of Legolas', from the long blonde hair to his gray eyes. The two elves embraced.  
  
"Legolas, we must ride now, lest King Aragorn's men catch up. We can talk as we ride."  
  
A nudge later, the two were speeding through the brush.  
  
"Eruan, how did you find..I mean, how did you know I-"  
  
"You are the talk of Middle Earth, brother."  
  
Legolas raised an eyebrow. "So father sent you?" Eruan furrowed his brow, not looking back.  
  
"Nay, Thranduil did not send me. He sits on his throne, despairing, thinking his son is to be slain."  
  
"He know? Then why did he do nothing?"  
  
"Brother, you know that Kings cannot meddle with the affairs of Kings. Your trial and crime were of Gondor, not Mirkwood." Legolas fell silent, and took a moment to look over his brother.  
  
Eruan was a mirror image of him, save for that he was older. Eruan was really Legolas' half-brother, his father being the King, his mother a servant by the name of Indil. When Eruan was born, Thranduil had in fear banished Indil and her husband, Heru. Heru had never known that he wasn't Eruan's father until he died in the forest.  
  
When Eruan and Legolas finally met each other face to face, it was in the dungeon. After Thranduil found out his first born son was once again in the castle, he panicked, and ordered Legolas to kill him, lest he claim the throne of Mirkwood. Eventually, Eruan had saved Legolas' life when he had slipped off a balcony. Realizing the truth, Legolas arranged for Eruan to escape to Rivendell, away from Thranduil's wrath, where he lived now, though he seldom stayed there. Eruan was an accomplished tracker and hunter, and spent most of his time roaming Middle Earth.  
  
"Eruan, where are we going?" Eruan glanced behind him.  
  
"We are going to track the princess Arwen, and clear your name." He grinned slyly. "Of course."  
  
Legolas wiggled his brow. "But, brother, Arwen is dead. They found her body."  
  
"They found A body, not necessarily Arwen's."  
  
"But Eruan, how can-"  
  
"Before I picked up new of you Legolas, I was tracking a band of Orcs. You know how rare Orcs are these days, most of them are shut up in caves and the mountains." Eruan shook his head. "Moving on, I decided to follow them and see their purpose. They spoke to one another in Common Speech, there seemed to be different breeds of Orc in one pack. They spoke of 'the elf wench' and a boy. I grew extremely suspicious, and this was before I heard of your troubles. It only confirms my thoughts and weighs down my heart."  
  
Eruan paused and looked deep into Legolas' eyes.  
  
"We must make haste, now, before the worst can happen. I am not sure of this child of which they spoke, but-"  
  
"Arwen was expecting." Legolas interrupted.  
  
Eruan's eyes widened. "Then even more so the reason to hurry. We ride."  
  
And then the two brothers rode off, towards Orcs, danger, and hopefully Queen Arwen.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Ah Lady Arwen, you look ravishing today!"  
  
Arwen Evenstar laughed, a lovely sound that reminded Legolas of songbirds.  
  
"Why thank you, my prince."  
  
"My prince?" Aragorn teased, coming up behind her and embracing the elf.  
  
"You are my knightly king Aragorn," Arwen joked. "but Legolas will always be my prince."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
(A/N: Make sure to review. Next chapter soon.) 


	3. In Captivity

Arwen Evenstar lay curled in the dirt, her hair strung with burs and her face streaked in mud. A tear slid down her cheek as she fingered the rough rope that encircled her soft skin.  
  
"No! Don't! Leave her alone! She's done nothing to you!"  
  
Arwen started as the young boy sleeping beside her jerked from side to side in his sleep, shouting and crying. He was only eight, maybe nine. Swiftly she covered his mouth with her hand and jolted him awake as an Orc stomped over to them.  
  
"What's all this ruckus? You're keeping us awake you are."  
  
The disgusting creature leered at her, then scowled as the elf's arms instinctively curled around her belly, protecting the unborn child that lay within.  
  
"You're lucky you're still alive," He sneered, spitting on a nearby sapling. "If I had ever caught a pregnant wench like you I'd put you out 'o your misery. Do nothing but hold us up. And the boy, both of you slow! So slow! If I was in charge I'd-"  
  
"Tell me Zagar, what would you do if you were in charge?"  
  
The Orc's head snapped around as an authoritive voice loomed over them all.  
  
The man, wearing a chain mail vest, jumped down from his rock, landing lightly on his feet.  
  
"May I remind you, Zagar, that not only have my men NOT killed you and your band of wild Orcs, but we have fed you, clothed you, and are PAYING you for your fighting."  
  
The Orc bowed low.  
  
"Forgive me, master, I forgot my place."  
  
The man narrowed his eyes.  
  
"Be about your business. And that does not include harrassing the Gondorian prisoners."  
  
The man's eyes snapped towards Arwen, who quickly lowered hers, allowing her hair to half-cover her face in the process.  
  
"It is still my only wish, my lady, that you would give me your name."  
  
Arwen shook her head, not even daring to speak.  
  
"You shouldn't blame me for your predicament, you know." The man began, brushing his brown hair out of his face.  
  
"It was all the doing of that imposter! That 'Lord Aragorn'. Your new King." The man scowled, green eyes flashing.  
  
"Him and the elves! He had no right to claim the throne, none at all" He paused. "Wouldn't you think that the kingdom would go to the ones who have guarded it for nearly a hundred years?"  
  
Arwen bit her lip.  
  
"And then, he married that elf, that Arwen, forging an everlasting alliance with the elves. Everyone thought it was wonderful. Everyone except us!"  
  
The man gestured to his army, consisting of fifty or so Gondorian men.  
  
"We were the rightful guardians, protecting and defending Gondor when no one else would! Curse Rohan, curse elves, curse Aragorn!"  
  
He swung around, eyes landing on the young boy beside Arwen.  
  
"I hear she's with child now, this 'Queen Arwen'. Half-elf, half-man he'll be. What a mess. I can't-"  
  
He stopped, eyes fixated on Arwen's swollen stomach. She quickly looked away, making sure her hair covered her ears. If this man shall how bright her eyes were, heard how sweet her voice was.......  
  
"Yexteg!"  
  
"Here, Laen."  
  
The man addressed him curtly.  
  
"Where were these prisoners captured?"  
  
The Orc cocked his head.  
  
"Why, near the very gates of Gondor sir, where the siege was." "Her." Laen gestured at Arwen with his bow.  
  
"Exactly where did you catch her?"  
  
"Right outside the palace gates, singing funny, I've never heard words like 'em before, so I took her."  
  
Laen narrowed his eyes.  
  
"Speaking funny eh? Hmm.... maybe the young ELF didn't realize she had stumbled upon a siege scene, she was so caught up in singing in ELVISH?"  
  
Arwen lowered her eyes, silently cursing herself for being so careless, for letting her momentary joy cloud her senses.  
  
When Arwen didn't respond, Laen smirked.  
  
"Perfect. Absolutely perfect. We frame the Mirkwood archer, who not only happened to be an elf, but happened to be none other than Prince Legolas. Second, we kill an elf maiden, then leave it to be assumed as Queen Arwen, then kidnap the real Arwen and take her to Imladris, were we kill her. Imagine the irony, dying less than a mile from your home."  
  
Arwen was sickened at the sight of the grin upon Laen's face.  
  
"Instead, however, we end up kidnapping the wrong elf, and the real queen is mistaken and taken as prisoner. Why are you crying? You aren't dead!"  
  
Arwen lashed out at the man as her tears streamed down her face, speaking for the first time in his presence.  
  
"How could you do such a thing?!? Terrorize families and tear them apart, only to joke of it later! You are men of filth, and I hope you rot in it!"  
  
SMACK.  
  
Arwen staggered backwards as the blow to her face sent her senses reeling. "Silence, elf."  
  
Arwen responded by spitting in his face.  
  
"Agh!" Laen kicked at Arwen as he wiped the saliva from his face.  
  
"You will pay dearly for that, and I will personally make sure your Aragorn will never find you again. Alive or dead."  
  
The young boy could only whimper in the dirt as two Orcs bound and gagged the elf-queen, and dragged her away through the night.  
  
************************** "Ah Lady Arwen, you look ravishing today!"  
  
Arwen Evenstar laughed, a lovely sound that reminded Legolas of songbirds.  
  
"Why thank you, my prince."  
  
"My prince?" Aragorn teased, coming up behind her and embracing the elf.  
  
"You are my knightly king Aragorn," Arwen joked. "but Legolas will always be my prince."  
  
********************* 


End file.
